Announced one year after the System/360 in April 1965, the IBM 2314 provided eight disk drives and a spare along with a control unit together in one facility. A new disk pack with 11 disks doubled the number of storage surfaces over those available in the first removable disk pack. Increased recording density provided a storage capacity of 29.2 million bytes per pack or 233 million bytes in the eight-pack facility. The access time and latency of the 2314 was the same as the older IBM 2311 but the 2314 offered double the data rate of 310,000 bytes per second. The 2314 also was attractive because it was four times lower in price per megabyte of storage.

Aided by OS/360 -- the System/360's operating system -- the 2314 allowed large databases to be accessed, and the system shifted from job to job automatically as long as the necessary instructions and data were online. Some observers have said that OS/360 helped to make the 2314 the most profitable storage product to that time and that the 2314 contributed to the success of the System/360.

In January 1969, IBM announced two new versions of the 2314 -- the Model 1 A1 and Model 1 A2 -- each with an access time 20 percent faster than the previously available Model 1. One of the new disk storage models had five independent disk units; the other had eight. The five-unit version had a storage capacity of 145.8 million bytes; the larger one had a capacity of 233.4 million bytes. The average access time was reduced from 75 to 60 milliseconds. Minimum access time was 25 milliseconds. The new versions included their own control units and were designed for use with System/360 Models 30, 40, 50, 65, 67, 75 and 85. The smaller 2314 rented for $3,875 a month and sold for $175,075. The larger version rented for $5,675 a month, with a purchase price of $256,400. First customer shipments were scheduled for the third quarter of 1969.

Later in 1969, a box with two drives was offered. In 1970 the 2319 storage unit was configured with three 2314 drives plus control electronics for attachment to the smaller of the just-announced System/370 processors (see details below).

IBM 2314 direct access storage facility -- A series
It provided massive direct access storage for IBM System/370 Models 135 through 195 and IBM System/360 Models 30 through 195. It offered from one to nine storage modules. Each module or set of modules was housed with a storage control as a single subsystem facility. It delivered data at very high access speeds.

Stored up to 29.17 million bytes or 58.35 million digits per disk pack.

Stored up to 233.4 million bytes in increments of 29 million bytes per facility.

A ninth drive could be included in the facility, offering backup capability for preventative or emergency maintenance.

Address plugs permitted changing a drive for in-line servicing, or overlapping setup of new disk packs while processing continued on other 2314 drives.

IBM 2314 direct access storage facility - B series
It provided large capacity, low-cost direct access storage for use with System/370 and System/360 Models 30 through 195, except for Model 44. The 2314 DASF-B Series was made up of an IBM 2314 storage control model B1 and combinations of IBM 2319 disk storage models B1 and B2. Each 2314/2319 subsystem used standard, interchangeable IBM 2316 disk packs to provide 87, 175 or 233 million bytes of online data storage in a single facility. A 2314/2319 subsystem attached to a System/360 or System/370 via a selector channel. Multiple subsystems could be attached to a System/360 or System/370 to provide additional online data storage.

IBM 2314 storage control, Model B1

Used with 2319-B1 and 2319-B2 disk storage units to form a subsystem with three, six or nine (eight plus a spare) drives.

Controlled transmission and checking of data between computer and disk drives.